US gasoline edges up to nearly $3.97/gallon-survey

April 8 (Reuters) - The average price for a gallon of
gasoline in the United States rose 3.74 cents over the past two
weeks, the smallest increase since January, according to the
nationwide Lundberg Survey.

The national average of a gallon of regular gasoline rose to
$3.9671 on April 6, according to the survey of about 2,500
gasoline retailers.

That was smaller than the 11.49-cent increase in the prior
survey for the two weeks ended March 23.

"If crude oil will stay where it is then gasoline prices
will peak very, very quickly, if they have not done so already,"
survey editor Trilby Lundberg told Reuters on Sunday.

Gas prices already are falling in some cities, such as
Chicago and Los Angeles, Lundberg said.

"They are dropping in many markets of the West and the
Midwest," Lundberg said.

Lundberg also said significant unused capacity exists at
U.S. refineries in case demand spikes.

"We are heading into the stronger demand season, but with
all that unused capacity there should be a continued abundance
of gasoline supply," Lundberg said.

Chicago tallied the highest average price among cities
covered by the survey, at $4.45 per gallon, although that marked
a 11-cent drop from the prior survey. Tulsa, Oklahoma was the
lowest, at $3.66.
(Reporting By Lewis Krauskopf; Editing by Bernard Orr)